AHAVA was a settlement in Babylonia lying along a stream of the same name, probably a large canal near the Euphrates. None of the conjectures as to the exact locality can be verified. It was here that Ezra mustered his people before their departure for Jerusalem ( Ezra 8:15; Ezra 8:21; Ezra 8:31 ). Some district north or north-west of Babylon, near the northern boundary of Babylonia, is most probable.
J. F. McCurdy.